49ers fans toughen up, move past 'chardonnay days'

NEW ORLEANS -- Ari Novick can attest that the old image of 49ers fans as wine-sipping, cheese-savoring football elitists wasn't just a stereotype.

"I was a kid going to 49ers games during that chardonnay era," said Novick, an Orange County anger-management expert. "My parents would come to games with wine and cheese. That's exactly what that fan population was like. But it's different now."

While the 49ers have roared back into the familiar territory of the Super Bowl, the fans coming along for the ride no longer are mocked around the country for being too laid back. Instead, ugly incidents at Candlestick Park in recent years including ejections, brawling, harassment of opposing fans and even gunplay have fueled a more malevolent reputation of loutish troublemakers.

San Francisco 49ers fans celebrate against the Atlanta Falcons late in the fourth quarter of the NFC Championship game on Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. (Nhat V. Meyer/Staff)
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An example of that new national perception came when CBSsports.com columnist Gregg Doyel recently wrote of 49ers fans heading to The Big Easy: "Don't bring those guns, those knives, that violence."

The Super Bowl -- with its mortgage-size ticket prices -- draws a corporate-style crowd, so it's doubtful any real trouble will erupt in New Orleans. But San Francisco officials are taking precautions with more than 400 police officers on duty Sunday -- triple the usual number -- and plans to monitor the size of crowds.

How did the 49er Faithful become Exhibit A of fan misbehavior?

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"It's the 49ers fans' turn to be under the microscope because of the number of incidents they've had the last two years," said Ray DiNunzio, the NFL's director of strategic security programs. "But it's unfair to paint with a broad brush that the San Francisco fan is the most evil one out there. It's a very small number of fans bringing that reputation."

Novick, a Los Gatos native who works with the NFL on fan behavior issues, agrees with the few-bad-apples theory. But, he added, it's impossible to ignore the shift toward boorish antics among all sports fans.

San Francisco 49ers fans celebrate their team's touchdown during the first quarter of an NFC divisional playoff game against the Green Bay Packers, Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
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"If you just look at fan culture, things aren't the same as they were 30 years ago, and no team is immune," Novick said. "This isn't just a 49ers problem."

San Jose resident Lynda Martinez was appalled by the television footage of fans who destructively took to San Francisco streets after the 49ers' victory over the Atlanta Falcons, leading to a dozen arrests.

"I'm watching people celebrate by doing bad stuff, and I was thinking that this is only the NFC Championship game," said Martinez, 67, a lifelong fan of Bay Area teams. "But what will it be like if they win the Super Bowl? It's sad, but the whole tenor among fans is just different from the way it used to be."

The way it is now, or at least the past few years, is disturbing. At a 49ers-Raiders preseason game in August 2011, two people were shot outside the stadium, another was badly beaten inside a restroom and cellphone videos posted on YouTube captured booze-fueled fights in the stands.

When the 49ers defeated New Orleans in the playoffs last year, there were numerous reports of Saints fans being verbally targeted. The following week, when the 49ers lost to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship game, 110 people were ejected and police arrested 29 -- including a man with a 2-year-old child.

"I'm leaving Candlestick after that game and a guy tells me 'Get the (expletive) out of my way' and sends me flying with a shove," said Saladin Martin, 57, who lives in Redwood City. "I'm wearing Niners' stuff. It's not like I've got Giants' gear on yelling, 'Yeah, we whipped the Niners!' But he's mad."

Martin, who is in New Orleans this week, isn't your typical fan. He was a reserve cornerback on the 49ers' first Super Bowl team, in 1982.

"It's not just an image," Martin added. "Fans are rougher."

Harry Edwards, a sports psychologist who consults with the 49ers, said a mean streak among some fans simply reflects what's happening in society.

"It's not the 49er fans," he said. "It's not the skull-and-crossbones Raider fans. It's not even any sports fan. We've allowed incivility to take over our culture. This is an America problem."

The reasons for the transformation in the 49ers' game-day fan may trace back to the franchise's lean years. As the team struggled, season ticket holders sold their seats on the secondary market -- leading to a younger, more male and more likely to be intoxicated crowd that wasn't invested in the team.

That reputation appeared to take another blow when it initially was reported that a 49ers fan stabbed a Falcons fan outside the Georgia Dome after the NFC title game on Jan. 20. But it later turned out to have nothing to do with fan rivalries and was a dispute over tailgate food between two men who didn't attend the game.

The NFL -- well-aware that fans can recreate a stadium atmosphere in their living rooms with big-screen, high-definition televisions -- has taken a hard line on rowdies by enforcing a fan code of conduct.

It's working, the league's DiNunzio said, because incidents were down this season throughout the league, including fewer ejections and arrests. Those booted now must complete an online course designed by Novick before being allowed into future games.

"Over time, you're going to see the 49ers' image improve again," added Novick, who praises the team for steps it has taken to improve the fan experience. "It's just going to take time."